Building and Leading New Academic Programs in Higher Education

Designing, creating, and leading new degree programs can be an arduous and unpredictable task for any college or university faculty member. Faculty, typically trained within a specific discipline and who are charged with creating new degree programs, are rarely prepared for the process. In addition to being ill-prepared, faculty and academic leaders often face administrative hurdles such as understanding complex approval processes, conducting market research and preparing “selling points” to gain peer and administrative approval, and ensuring new degrees and programs are seamlessly built into campus structures. Building and Leading New Academic Programs in Higher Education: A Practical Guide for Faculty is a practical handbook and necessary companion for any faculty member tasked with starting a new major or degree program at the college level, from bachelors to doctoral. Based on the practical, lived experiences of the authors who have both proposed, built, and led new, successful degree programs, this book provides the structural insights and often unspoken list of chores faculty must consider when beginning a new college or university academic program.

Gretchen Oltman has spent the past decade building and leading new academic programs. She is a tenured associate professor and program director of a graduate program at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska. A lifelong educator, she also holds a Ph.D. in educational studies, a law degree, and a master’s degree in teaching.

Jackie Clark earned her doctorate in higher education and student affairs at The University of Georgia. She is currently an associate professor and has developed and currently leads two programs; an M.Ed. in higher education and student affairs and a Ph.D. in leadership studies.